A probe apparatus includes a card clamp unit detachably supporting a probe card; and a wafer mounting table adsorbing the semiconductor wafer and bringing electrodes on the semiconductor wafer into contact with the probes. In order to mount the semiconductor wafer including an annular portion protruding from a rear surface of an outer peripheral portion and a thin portion having a thickness smaller than the annular portion, the wafer mounting table includes a planar portion on which the thin portion is mounted; and a step-shaped portion which is formed at an edge of the planar portion and mounts the annular portion thereon. Multiple circular vacuum chuck grooves are concentrically formed in the planar portion, and at least some of the vacuum chuck grooves are connected to multiple vacuum paths through which vacuum evacuation is performed at multiple positions separated from each other by 90° or more along a circumferential direction.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A probe apparatus comprising: a card clamp unit configured to detachably support a probe card including multiple probes; and a wafer mounting table, having a driving unit, configured to adsorb and hold a semiconductor wafer and configured to bring electrodes formed on the semiconductor wafer into contact with the multiple probes of the probe card supported on the card clamp unit by operating the driving unit, wherein, in order to mount the semiconductor wafer including an annular portion protruding from a rear surface of an outer peripheral portion thereof and a thin portion, as the other portion than the annular portion, having a thickness smaller than that of the annular portion, the wafer mounting table further includes a planar portion on which the thin portion is mounted and a step-shaped portion which is formed at an edge portion of the planar portion and mounts the annular portion thereon, multiple circular vacuum chuck grooves are concentrically formed in the planar portion, and the multiple vacuum chuck grooves are connected to a first vacuum path, a second vacuum path, and a third vacuum path through which vacuum evacuation is performed at multiple positions, in the multiple vacuum chuck grooves, the vacuum chuck grooves at an inner periphery side thereof are connected to the first vacuum path, and the vacuum chuck grooves at an outer periphery side thereof are connected to the second vacuum path and the third vacuum path, the first vacuum path and the second vacuum path are arranged to be adjacent to each other, the second vacuum path and the third vacuum path are arranged to be separated from each other by 90° or more along a circumferential direction thereof, and in the multiple vacuum chuck grooves, a distance between three adjacent vacuum chuck grooves formed at the outermost periphery portion thereof is shorter than a distance between the other adjacent vacuum chuck grooves.
2. A wafer mounting table for a probe apparatus, wherein the wafer mounting table is configured to adsorb and hold a semiconductor wafer and includes a driving unit, the wafer mounting table is configured to bring electrodes formed on the semiconductor wafer into contact with probes of a probe card by operating the driving unit, in order to mount the semiconductor wafer including an annular portion protruding from a rear surface of an outer peripheral portion thereof and a thin portion, as the other portion than the annular portion, having a thickness smaller than that of the annular portion, the wafer mounting table further includes a planar portion on which the thin portion is mounted and a step-shaped portion which is formed at an edge portion of the planar portion and mounts the annular portion thereon, multiple circular vacuum chuck grooves are concentrically formed in the planar portion, and the multiple vacuum chuck grooves are connected to a first vacuum path, a second vacuum path, and a third vacuum path through which vacuum evacuation is performed at multiple positions, in the multiple vacuum chuck grooves, the vacuum chuck grooves at an inner periphery side thereof are connected to the first vacuum path, and the vacuum chuck grooves at an outer periphery side thereof are connected to the second vacuum path and the third vacuum path, the first vacuum path and the second vacuum path are arranged to be adjacent to each other, the second vacuum path and the third vacuum path are arranged to be separated from each other by 90° or more along a circumferential direction thereof, and in the multiple vacuum chuck grooves, a distance between three adjacent vacuum chuck grooves formed at the outermost periphery portion thereof is shorter than a distance between the other adjacent vacuum chuck grooves.
3. The probe apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the distance between the three adjacent vacuum chuck grooves formed at the outermost periphery portion thereof is one half of the distance between the other adjacent vacuum chuck grooves.
4. The wafer mounting table of claim 2 , wherein the distance between the three adjacent vacuum chuck grooves formed at the outermost periphery portion thereof is one half of the distance between the other adjacent vacuum chuck grooves.
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April 25, 2013
December 20, 2016
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